India’s defence research agency and the navy have jointly conducted four successful tests of an indigenous Air Droppable Container, ADC-150, that would be fitted in the Boeing P8I maritime patrol aircraft.
The ADC-150 is all set to be inducted into the Indian Navy’s P8I fleet soon as the system has completed all prerequisite trials.
“Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Navy jointly conducted four successful in-flight release trials of the indigenous Air Droppable Container ‘ADC-150’ from the P8I aircraft off the coast of Goa between February 21 and March 1, 2026, at different extreme release conditions,” a Ministry of Defence statement on Tuesday (March 10, 2026) said.
Indigenously designed and developed to deliver a 150-kg payload, the Air Droppable Container would enhance the naval operational logistics capabilities.
The ADC-150 would enable the Indian Navy to provide quick response to naval vessels under distress, needing critical stores and equipment, and medical assistance at sea, deployed far from the coast, it said.
The Naval Science and Technological Laboratory at Visakhapatnam is the nodal laboratory for the activity.
Aerial Delivery Research & Development Establishment at Agra developed the parachute system, and Centre for Military Airworthiness & Certification at Bengaluru provided the flight clearance and certification.
The Defence Research & Development Laboratory at Hyderabad provided the instrumentation support for the trials, the statement said.
To meet the requirements of the Indian Navy, the ADC-150 system for the P8I aircraft was developed and qualified in a short timeframe.
As all the developmental flight trials have been completed successfully, the system is expected to be inducted into the Indian Navy soon, the statement added.